Because the biblical Book of Ruth tells a story of kindness and commitment that marks Ruth’s decision to , and the book is read ritually on Shavuot, every newspaper in this country on the holiday eve tells a few beautiful stories of modern converts to Judaism. Once a year, converts get a few moments of attention. And then everybody forgets about them for the rest of the year.
Very few people lift a finger to assist converts beyond their day in the beit din (i.e., after they are formally converted through a rabbinical court).
This column, timed specifically for the “day after” Shavuot, is meant to redress this lacuna. Understand: requires not only a change of lifestyle and belief system but often entails replacing country, language, livelihood, community, and even family ties. Many individuals who have dedicated themselves to joining the Jewish People find themselves alone.
They need and deserve support to meet the untold challenges that devolve from their monumental conversion undertaking. Most of the fine organizations that deal with conversion are focused on the conversion process itself – teaching Jewish knowledge and testing the converts’ commitment. Some groups advocate for halachic (Jewish legal) or systemic change to the often impersonal and rigid rabbinate conversion mechanism.
But care for the individual convert’s personal and communal needs after conversion is often sorely lacking. Due to the centralized conversion system in Israel, many converts are not.